Page 69 - Flaunt 175 - Diana

All the time, everybody’s looking so far for it. But sometimes, it’s right under your nose.That’s how I feel, and the ob- jects and the things I’ve been drawn to—used, kind of period objects, antiques, for whatever that period is—the 50s, or the 60s, or 70s, or the 1600s, you will make these things exist. I’ve never been drawn to ‘Let’s make shit, create something from scratch,’ in a way. It’s all there to be drawn on, to work with and take inspiration from, and you see where that goes. Bringing in other kinds of people to take on it, then, just adds other layers and layers and layers and layers. And I think you end up with a better thing.
And what do you feel has allowed you two as a duo to withstand the ups and downs of cre- ative collaboration?
BD: I think allowing tension and escalation of tension, at times, is what gives you a better piece at the end of it. I think the only way to survive in a relationship, and collaboration for work, is to know that nobody ever wins unless you both do, which sounds so hippy dippy, but it’s the truth. Because the piece has to ultimately win right? Sure. Every- body has the same goal, right? You want the work to be beautiful.
One very cool piece
from the new collection is the Italian cabinet unit, with the canvas facade. I suppose this
piece illustrates this sort of positive tension you’re speaking toward?
DG: Absolutely—that was the first point. That the canvas wasn’t meant to be used, which I love. And the end result is not some- thing which is too precious. The details were really good on the cabinet, which is again why we kind of found it, and picked it, and then lived with it for probably two years—I would say, until the right piece came along, this complete marriage of the canvas and the piece of furniture, and it just organically came together, as
you see. It was almost weird. It was too easy, even though it took a few years. And you know, every single bit of the canvas ended up on that piece, which was bizarre, and we came to a time when there was nothing left over. It was amazing. There was absolutely nothing. Every sliver is on there.
And how about the resonance of Clarke & Reilly in California? What about the culture out here lends to what you’re doing? DG: Maybe people are hungry for that—that European mystique.
I mean, there’s very cool people with great style and taste, and then you’ve got the cool houses. So when you throw it off a bit, and add something that doesn’t really belong there, it kind of works, and makes more sense of it.
For me personally, I just think the light is so cool out there. We get a lot of inspiration from California, and I think that comes through in the passion for the pieces—the fact that we love the place... which is really kind of harsh and gritty, and there’s this conversion of that with people’s perception of ‘the beautiful Cal- ifornia’—but I’ve always been drawn to the grit of it, and walking around the place, that’s what I love about it.
How about the expression of the collection in this very stylized and emotive film?
BD: I think a proper collection of pieces is always a challenge. The last time we were able to have a body of work was in 2013, and from then there’s been a lot of one-off commissions, so it became a very considered effort to collect all the pieces and see what story might come out of that—showing it in another medi- um, in a way that wasn’t so uncomfortable for David, ultimately. DG: Yeah: is there any other way of doing it, where it’s not neces- sarily in a gallery, or how do you show the work? Is there another way? The only way is trying to see what happens as a result of get- ting interesting people to work with, to see where you go with it. And I suppose that’s where UNKLE comes in?
DG: We worked with James on a few things in the past, and we were on the same wavelength completely. He gets the emotion of our work and how you can draw people into it. Yes, it’s an object, and you can kick it and do whatever you want with it, but it has actually had a journey and a process, and James gets that—he gets what goes into it—and I respect him and his process and what he puts into it.
How about the actual product installation at the former Hughes residence? What went into that?
BD: It took David about two weeks to install it, I think, and feel good about it. A big aspect, of course, was the indigo wall, which is actually kind of amazing. It’s a pretty amazing bit of textile, like 80 feet long, and lots of different pieces, with three different sets of indigo dyed over different times of the year, and then hand- stitched.
And was there a brief for your director, Alexa?
DG: Two random photographers—one was quite dark, and one was very beautiful—so she just responded to that with a bit of direction.
BD: Yes, and she always wanted to shoot through the indigo, so she shot everything through the indigo.
DG: You can’t see a fucking thing!
BD: At all! And there was absolutely no agenda. We just want- ed to create a beautiful piece of work, if that was possible— darkly romantic—and just see what it looked like.
It’s a very striking piece, congratulations. Finally, how about what things might look like for Clarke & Reilly after the dust settles on the pandemic? What’s ahead?
BD: I mean, is it a cheat to say I’m just looking forward to the continuation of where we are at? I think this project, which we are almost at the end of, is very much the beginning of what we want to continue doing through a series, so I think it’s just continuing with that energy. We definitely have had a chance to sit back and think and be a little bit more insular—I don’t think introspective is how I would put it, because I think we tend to be that way anyways just by nature—but insular was
a nice way to be. I think it has pushed us to get back to our bravery, really.
DG: Post-pandemic, I want to see people again, I want to connect with people. I mean, we all have a community, but you have a barrier there, with the masks—and struggle with that, not seeing people’s expressions. To me, it’s fucking hard, it re- ally is. So yeah, to just live life again, do something fun. I also just feel fucking incredibly lucky as well. We are in a position where we live and we are not stuck in a tragic building where you can’t leave, so I think: man, we got it fucking easy.
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PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMMA LEWIS & JIM J TURNER.